Just Announced:

Zeiss Loxia 21mm F2.8 T* Lens for Sony E Mount | Price: $1299
Featuring a compact form factor at only 2.9″ in length, the Zeiss Loxia 25mm f/2.4 Lens is a wide-angle prime designed for full-frame Sony E-mount mirrorless cameras. It is based on the Distagon optical concept, providing an image that is notably sharp and free of distortion from edge to edge. The optical construction also incorporates two anomalous partial dispersion elements and one aspherical lens to help control chromatic aberrations and increase clarity and color accuracy. Applied to all elements is Zeiss’ T* anti-reflective coating that minimizes lens flare and ghosting.

Just Available:

Lensbaby Burnside 35mm f/2.8 Lens for Sony E | Price: $500
Characterized by its swirly bokeh, Lensbaby Burnside 35mm f/2.8 prime for Sony E-mount cameras features two separate diaphragms, an extensive amount of control over selective focus and bokeh with a distinct out-of-focus swirl. The six elements, four groups optical design also contributes to the unique look, and each of the glass elements have been multi-coated to control flare and ghosting fore high contrast and accurate color rendering. In addition to fully manual exposure control, the lens also requires manual focus operation and has a minimum focusing distance of 6 inches.

Voigtlander Nokton Classic 35mm f/1.4 Lens | Price: $799
Standard wide-angle prime designed for full-frame Sony E mirrorless cameras. Classic wide focal length pairs with a bright f/1.4 maximum aperture for control of depth of field for producing shallow depth of field and low-light shooting. Symmetrical optical design is used, along with high refractive index glass, to produce sharp, clear imagery but with some intentional aberrations left to realize a smooth and vintage character. The lens’s manual focus design permits working with subjects as close as 11.8″ away and the mount incorporates electronic contacts to relay EXIF data and to make use of in-camera shooting and focus aids.

Sony FE 24-105mm F4 G OSS Lens | Price: $1298
Finally the most-requested lens by our readers is here. Designed for corner-to-corner sharpness at all focal lengths, this wide-angle to short-telephoto zoom with a constant f/4 maximum aperture, maintains consistent performance throughout the zoom range. Its advanced optical design employs aspherical and extra-low dispersion glass elements to control color fringing, distortion, and a variety of aberrations for greater sharpness and clarity. A Nano AR Coating has also been applied to suppress lens flare and ghosting for high contrast and color accuracy when working in harsh light.

Coming Soon:

Sony G Master FE Lenses

Sony G Master lenses are designed to combine both the ultimate in sharpness with spectacular bokeh. Their XA Extreme Asperical Lens Elements are designed to resolve an industry-best 50 line pairs per mm and with surface polished within tolerances of 0.01 microns for extremely smooth falloff in out-of-focus areas. They are quite simply the best lenses I’ve ever used.

Sony FE 16-35mm F2.8 GM Lens | Price: $2198
The sharpest wide angle zoom ever tested by DxO Mark, this G Master wide-angle constant f/2.8 maximum aperture zoom designed for full-frame E-mount mirrorless cameras offers consistent performance throughout the zoom range and benefits working in low-light conditions. The optical design incorporates two extra-low dispersion elements to reduce chromatic aberrations along with two XA elements and three aspherical elements, which significantly controls spherical aberrations for a high degree of image sharpness and clarity. Nano AR coating has been applied to limit ghosting and lens flare for increased contrast and color fidelity when working in strong lighting conditions.

Sony FE 24-70mm F2.8 GM Lens | Price: $2198
If you can only afford one lens – this would be my choice. 24-70mm is a great range for portrait photography because it allows you to shoot everything from wide environmental portraits to a tight intimate portrait and this flagship Sony lens is by far the best 24-70 on the market.

Sony FE 70-200mm F2.8 GM OSS Lens | Price $2598
Photojournalists, sports and wedding photographers rejoice! If you’ve been patiently waiting for a 70-200 F2.8 for E-mount, this lens is worth the wait. Like the other lenses in this series it’s incredibly sharp with nice balance for E-mount cameras.

Sony FE 100-400mm f/4.5-5.6 GM OSS Lens | Price: $2498
The longest FE lens is designed for outstanding resolution and sharpness with minimal aberrations using one Super ED and two ED elements and Nano AR coating. Weighing in at a best-in-class 49.2 oz this compact 100-400mm lens features dual floating elements for fast AF and a 3.2′ minimum focusing distance for 0.35x magnification. It’s equipped with both a Direct Drive SSM autofocus system as Optical SteadyShot image stabilization for outstanding performance at all focal lengths.

Sony FE 16-35mm f/4 ZA OSS Lens | Price: $1348
Constant f/4 maximum aperture wide-angle zoom lens designed for full-frame E-mount cameras, can also be used with Sony APS mirrorless cameras. Features a circular aperture that, through the use of curved blades, keeps the aperture almost perfectly circular from its wide-open setting to when it is closed for smoother, more natural defocusing highlights.

Sony FE 24-105mm F4 G OSS Lens | Price: $1298
Finally the most-requested lens by our readers is here. Designed for corner-to-corner sharpness at all focal lengths, this wide-angle to short-telephoto zoom with a constant f/4 maximum aperture, maintains consistent performance throughout the zoom range. Its advanced optical design employs aspherical and extra-low dispersion glass elements to control color fringing, distortion, and a variety of aberrations for greater sharpness and clarity. A Nano AR Coating has also been applied to suppress lens flare and ghosting for high contrast and color accuracy when working in harsh light.

Sony FE 70-200mm f/4 G OSS Lens | Price: $1498
Versatile telephoto zoom lens that takes over right where the FE 24-70mm leaves off. Nicely balanced in size and weight for Sony a7 Series cameras to give you telephoto reach without weighing you down. The OSS settings on this lens are designed to work with Sony a7 Mark II IBIS.

Sony FE 70-300mm f/4.5-5.6 G OSS Lens | Price: $1198
The most requested lens has finally been announced for Sony E-mount! This is a great lens for travel, landscapes and wildlife. Also an ideal choice for APS-C cameras like a6300 and a6000 where it offers the reach of a 450mm on fullframe.

Sony FE 55mm/1.8 ZA Lens | $998
This is one of the sharpest lenses I’ve ever owned – virtually on par with the performance of the legendary $4,000 Zeiss 55mm/1.4 Otus lens yet at a perfect size for Sony E-mount cameras. Great look when used wide open for shallow depth-of-field portraits.

Sony FE 50mm f/2.8 Macro Lens | Price: $498
Sony’s latest FE lens is a compact, sub-$500 macro that many Sony user have asked for. The optical design also incorporates both an aspherical and an extra-low dispersion element, which work to suppress chromatic and spherical aberrations for increased clarity throughout the focus range.

Sony FE 85mm F1.8 Lens | Price: $598
Joining the FE 28mm f/2 and FE 50mm f/1.8 in creating a more affordable and accessible system while still providing excellent optical performance. It uses an ED element to reduce aberrations, as well as a nine-blade circular aperture for smooth bokeh. It features a double linear motor system for fast, quiet autofocus. The lens is designed for manual focus, as well, and it has a programmable focus hold button.

THIRD-PARTY FULLFRAME E-MOUNT LENSES

Zeiss Batis AF E-Mount Lenses

This pair of the Zeiss E-mount lenses could be called ‘Baby Otus’ for their similarity to legendary Zeiss Otus lenses. They feature linear motors for fast, smooth autofocus performance and an OLED display that highlights the focus distance and depth of field range.

Zeiss Batis 18mm F2.8 E-mount Lens | Price: $1499
Featuring a Distagon concept with a floating elements design that maintains consistent sharpness and illumination throughout the focusing range, and a series of aspherical and special glass elements help to control both chromatic and spherical aberrations. Well-suited to interior, architectural and astrophotography, the Batis 18mm f/2.8 blends its extremely wide 99° angle of view with a high degree of functionality.

Zeiss Batis 85mm f/1.8 Lens | Price: $1199
This short telephoto portrait lens has a f/1.8 maximum aperture for greater focus control and enhanced low-light shooting and is the first lens manufactured by Zeiss that includes Optical Stabilization. While I personally prefer the Bokeh and speed of the Sony FE 85mm F1.4 GM this offers a smaller, lower-priced option when F1.8 is “fast enough.”

Zeiss Loxia E-Mount Lenses

If you prefer the touch and feel of a manual lenses for Sony E-mount cameras, Zeiss Loxia are a great choice. Not only are Loxia designed for digital sensors – they offer features not found on other manual focus glass including full electronic communication with Sony E-mount bodies. Metadata is recorded and focus magnification works as seamlessly as with a native lens. Zeiss Loxia manual focus lenses are designed for Sony E-mount sensors featuring a manual aperture ring that can be ‘de-clicked’ for silent operation best-suited for filmmakers.

Zeiss Loxia 21mm F2.8 T* Lens for Sony E Mount | Price: $1499
Featuring a compact form factor well-suited for full-frame Sony E mount mirrorless cameras, based on the Distagon optical concept for reduced distortion as well as consistent, even illumination and sharpness from edge to edge. The optical design also incorporates four anomalous partial dispersion elements and one aspherical element to control chromatic aberrations and increase overall clarity and color accuracy. Zeiss T* anti-reflective coating minimizes lens flare and ghosting for greater contrast.

Zeiss Loxia 21mm F2.8 T* Lens for Sony E Mount | Price: $1299
Featuring a compact form factor at only 2.9″ in length, the Zeiss Loxia 25mm f/2.4 Lens is a wide-angle prime designed for full-frame Sony E-mount mirrorless cameras. It is based on the Distagon optical concept, providing an image that is notably sharp and free of distortion from edge to edge. The optical construction also incorporates two anomalous partial dispersion elements and one aspherical lens to help control chromatic aberrations and increase clarity and color accuracy. Applied to all elements is Zeiss’ T* anti-reflective coating that minimizes lens flare and ghosting.

Voigtlander’s Fullframe E-Mount Lens line-up includes the Hyper-Wide 10mm f/5.6 – the widest production full frame lens ever made, plus updated versions of their 12mm f/5.6 and their popular 15mm f/4.5 III to the Sony E-mount line.

Voigtlander Nokton Classic 35mm f/1.4 Lens | Price: $799
Standard wide-angle prime designed for full-frame Sony E mirrorless cameras. Classic wide focal length pairs with a bright f/1.4 maximum aperture for control of depth of field for producing shallow depth of field and low-light shooting. Symmetrical optical design is used, along with high refractive index glass, to produce sharp, clear imagery but with some intentional aberrations left to realize a smooth and vintage character. The lens’s manual focus design permits working with subjects as close as 11.8″ away and the mount incorporates electronic contacts to relay EXIF data and to make use of in-camera shooting and focus aids.

Voigtlander 40mm f/1.2 Nokton Aspherical Lens | Price: $1059
Nokton 40mm f/1.2 Aspherical is a short normal prime designed for full-frame Sony E mirrorless cameras with an impressively fast f/1.2 maximum aperture that enables shallow depth of field and ideal for shooting in low light. Its optical layout includes two aspherical elements to suppress spherical aberrations and distortion for notable sharpness, clarity, and accurate rendering. Its manual focus design permits working with subjects as close as 1.1′ away, and a Selective Aperture Control System allows you to de-click the manual aperture ring for smooth, silent exposure adjustment for filmmaking.

Voigtlander Macro APO-Lanthar 65mm f/2 Aspherical Lens | Price: $999
With an apochromatic design to deliver crisp, aberration-free imagery and resolve the finest details, this lens is designed to work with full-frame Sony E-mount cameras. It offers users the ability to get close to their subjects thanks to the 1:2 magnification ratio afforded by the 12.2″ minimum focus distance. Its relatively fast f/2 aperture, allows shooting with shallow depth of field and in low-light.

Samyang/Rokinon E-Mount AF lenses

The following lenses are the first AF lenses from Samyang as well as their first fullframe lenses designed for mirrorless cameras making them considerably smaller than the fullframe DSLR lenses listed in the next section.

Rokinon AF 14mm F2.8 FE Lens for Sony E-mount | Price: $849
Specifically designed for full frame Sony E-mount mirrorless cameras. Samyang’s first autofocus lenses are compatible with both phase detect and contrast detect sensors to operate fast and accurate focus detection. Based on Samyang Optics’ optical technology, aspherical lenses have been included to minimize aberration and unnecessary light dispersion, delivering high resolution from center to corners of the image.

Rokinon AF 35mm f/1.4 FE Lens | Price: $799
This bright maximum aperture wide-angle prime lens for full-frame Sony E-mount mirrorless cameras is ideal for working in low-light and with shallow depth of field. The optical design incorporates a pair of aspherical elements and two high refractive index elements to suppress spherical aberrations in order to achieve a high degree of sharpness and clarity throughout the aperture range. Ultra Multi-Coating has also been applied to control flare and ghosting for increased contrast when working in strong lighting conditions. The lens’s autofocus motor works in conjunction with Sony cameras’ AF systems for quick and precise focusing performance, and manual focus override is also available for more refined control.

Rokinon AF 35mm f/2.8 FE Lens | Price: $349
Compact wide-angle prime designed for full-frame Sony E-mount mirrorless cameras. Its versatile wide angle of view is well-suited to general shooting applications and its slim form factor is ideal for travel and everyday photography. The optical design incorporates a pair of aspherical elements and one high refractive index element to suppress spherical aberrations in order to achieve a high degree of sharpness and clarity throughout the aperture range. An Ultra Multi-Coating has also been applied to control flare and ghosting for increased contrast when working in strong lighting conditions.

Rokinon AF 50mm f/1.4 FE Lens for Sony E-mount | Price: $699
Specifically designed for full frame Sony E-mount mirrorless cameras. Samyang’s first autofocus lenses are compatible with both phase detect and contrast detect sensors to operate fast and accurate focus detection. Based on Samyang Optics’ optical technology, aspherical lenses have been included to minimize aberration and unnecessary light dispersion, delivering high resolution from the center to the corners of the image.

Samyang/Rokinon E-Mount Manual Focus lenses

Third-party lens makers Samyang/Rokinon also offer a wide range of manual focus E-mount lenses. These are by far the LARGEST of all E-mount lenses since they’re designed for DSLR cameras. Yet they offer good optical performance for the price. The cine versions feature T-stops, clickless aperture and focus gearing.

Rokinon T-S 24mm f/3.5 ED AS UMC Tilt-Shift Lens | Price: $799
This full-frame Sony E-mount lens offers +/- 8.5° tilt and +/- 12mm shift that allows you to change the perspective of an image or correct for certain optical effects such as keystoning. The lens is quite capable in its own right, featuring a maximum aperture of f/3.5 and utilizing two aspherical and two extra-low dispersion glass elements to correct aberrations.

Rokinon 100mm f/2.8 Macro E-Mount Lens | Price: $549
This manual focus portrait-length lens provides life-size 1:1 magnification along with a minimum focusing distance of 1′. It incorporates one high refractive index element and one extra-low dispersion element into its design to reduce chromatic aberrations and distortions throughout the focusing range. An Ultra Multi-Coating has also been applied to minimize flare and ghosting for increase contrast and neutral color.

HandeVision IBERIT Fullframe E-mount Lenses

Chinese lensmaker HandeVision created a line-up of manual focus fullframe E-mount Lenses designed based on “German Engineering” with prototypes were developed, assembled and tested in Germany. Production lenses are made in Shanghai in accordance with German quality standards.

Handevision IBERIT 24mm f/2.4 Lens | Price: $611
Classic wide-angle focal length designed to be lightweight and compact for Sony E-mount mirrorless cameras. Its eight elements in seven groups optical design renders a classic image quality that has been optimized for use with current image sensors, and this image quality is benefitted by smooth manual focus operation down to 9.8″ for precise control. A durable all-metal construction is comprised of anodized aluminum, brass, and stainless steel to render a rugged physical design, and the lens barrel’s exterior also incorporates both depth of field and focusing distance scales for more accurate focus control.

Handevision IBERIT 35mm f/2.4 Lens| Price: $579
Lightweight and compact, wide-angle prime designed for Sony E-mount mirrorless cameras. It utilizes a simple six elements in six groups optical design to produce a classic image quality, which is benefitted by a smooth manual focusing action for working with subjects as close as 1.1′ away. An all-metal construction is comprised of anodized aluminum, brass, and stainless steel to render a rugged physical design, and the lens barrel’s exterior also incorporates both depth of field and focusing distance scales for more accurate focus control.

HandeVision IBERIT Full Frame 50mm F/2.4 Lens | Price: $544
Normal prime lens designed for Sony E-mount mirrorless cameras, is built to be compact and lightweight, as well as durable and reliable for long-term use. Its slim form factor houses a six elements in six groups optical design that produces a classic image quality, and the manual focus operation permits working with subjects as close as 2′ away. The all-metal construction of the lens housing utilizes anodized aluminum, brass, and stainless steel for rigidity and strength, and the barrel also features depth of field and focusing distance scales for more accurate focusing control.

HandeVision IBERIT Full Frame 75mm F/2.4 Lens | Price: $535
Short telephoto compact prime lens designed for Sony E-mount mirrorless cameras. It uses a simple five elements in five groups optical design to render imagery with a classic quality, and its precise manual focus control affords working with subjects as close as 2′ away. The all-metal construction of the lens housing utilizes anodized aluminum, brass, and stainless steel for rigidity and strength, and the barrel also features depth of field and focusing distance scales for more accurate focusing control.

Handevision IBERIT 90mm f/2.4 Lens | Price: $483
Short telephoto prime designed for Sony E-mount mirrorless cameras. It uses a simple four elements in four groups optical design to render imagery with a classic quality, and its precise manual focus control affords working with subjects as close as 2.3′ away. The all-metal construction of the lens housing utilizes anodized aluminum, brass, and stainless steel for rigidity and strength, and the barrel also features depth of field and focusing distance scales for more accurate focusing control.

Mitakon 135mm f/1.4 Lens for Sony E Mount | Price: $2,995
Only 100 of these MASSIVE f/1.4 manual focus lenses will ever be made. They’re available for pre-order directly from the manufacturer with a $500 deposit toward the $2,995 final price. The extremely large aperture provides shallow depth of field and bragging rights to what will be the fastest 135mm lens ever made – but DON’T buy it if you value sharpness.

Okay…this next one from Mitakon is more of a “specialty” than speed lens, but here ya go…

Mitakon Zhongyi 20mm f/2 4.5x Super Macro Lens | Price: $199
Designed for Sony E-mount mirrorless cameras, offering a magnification range of 4.5x to 4x, and a minimum working distance of 0.8″, this lens is solely designed for producing greater-than-life-size images of small objects without the need of extension tubes or other accessories. Its compact form-factor makes it ideal for placing into tight or awkward shooting angles and a metal lens barrel offers durability and rigidity.

Venus Optics Laowa E-Mount Lenses

Venus Optics Laowa 12mm f/2.8 Zero-D Lens | Price: $949
This F2.8 Super wide-angle prime is the perfect fast wide angle lens for astrophotography shots of the Milky Way. Featuring a rectilinear optical design, specifically meant to limit distortion, optical construction also incorporates a pair of aspherical elements and three extra-low dispersion elements to control both spherical and chromatic aberrations for improved sharpness and reduced color fringing. Frog Eye Coating has been applied to repel dust and moisture from the front element of the lens when working in trying environmental conditions. This lens features a precise manual focus design along with a floating optical system to maintain accurate rendering throughout the focus range from 7.09″ to infinity.

Venus Optics Laowa 105mm f/2 Smooth Trans Focus Lens | Price: $699
Designed to provide control over out-of-focus quality and to enhance bokeh, this short telephoto prime incorporates an apodization (APD) element, as well as two separate diaphragms—8- and 14-blade—to provide separate adjustment over the bokeh as well as the exposure and depth of field.

SPECIALTY GLASS

Lensbaby Trio 28mm f/3.5 Lens for Sony E Mount | Price: $280
This pancake-style lens incorporates a rotating front that holds Twist, Velvet, and Sweet optics for selecting different effects at a moment’s notice. The Twist uses a true Petzval design for a sharp center area surrounded by a swirl of twisty bokeh. Velvet has a dreamy central area with a soft focus look along with a soft glow. Sweet creates a sharp spot of focus in the center with a gradual fall-off to blur.

Lensbaby Burnside 35mm f/2.8 Lens for Sony E | Price: $500
Characterized by its swirly bokeh, Lensbaby Burnside 35mm f/2.8 prime for Sony E-mount cameras features two separate diaphragms, an extensive amount of control over selective focus and bokeh with a distinct out-of-focus swirl. The six elements, four groups optical design also contributes to the unique look, and each of the glass elements have been multi-coated to control flare and ghosting fore high contrast and accurate color rendering. In addition to fully manual exposure control, the lens also requires manual focus operation and has a minimum focusing distance of 6 inches.

Lensbaby Velvet 56mm f/1.6 Lens for Sony E | Price: $500
Produces a uniquely soft, glowing image quality that is well-suited to making expressive and ethereal portraits. The overall softness can be controlled by stopping down the lens while still retaining the smooth tonality of a soft focus lens. Compatible with full-frame sensors, this slightly longer-than-normal focal length pairs with the fast f/1.6 maximum aperture to excel in difficult lighting and achieve a shallow depth of field with controllable sharpness

Lensbaby Velvet 85mm f/1.8 lens | Price: $499.95
Designed to create soulful, striking portraits and macro photos with lovely bokeh, this unique short telephoto with distinct classic appeal, produces a mid-20th century-inspired image quality that is well-suited to portraiture. This lens’s softness can be controlled by stopping down in order to produce a range of effects from soft and dreamy to sharper and crunchier at smaller apertures. A 12-blade diaphragm also contributes to the lens’s aesthetic, and helps to produce a smooth bokeh and shallow depth of field.

Lensbaby Twist 60 Optic with Straight Body for Sony E | Price: $280
Features an internal 12-blade diaphragm for smooth out-of-focus areas. When shooting at a wider aperture, the Twist 60 swirly places more emphasis on your centered subject in full focus. As you stop down, the center area gets larger allowing you to bring more of your image into exact focus.

Meyer-Optik-Görlitz Lenses

German lens maker Meyer-Optik Gorlitz’s offers an expanding line-up of Sony E-Mount lenses including re-issues of many of their classic lens designs.

Meyer-Optik Gorlitz 50mm F0.95 Nocturnus II for E-Mount | Price: $2,999
Meyer Optik Görlitz Nocturnus 50mm F0.95 was developed especially for the use on full-frame Sony E-mount mirrorless cameras. The optical design also allows a high degree of sharpness even at wide-open apertures. Chromatic aberration is reduced to a minimum and is therefore hardly perceptible. It’s possible this lens is a joint venture with Mitakon with Meyer-Optik Gorlitz providing the quality assembly lacking in Mitakon-manufactured lenses.

Meyer-Optik Görlitz Primoplan 58 f1.9 Lens for E-Mount | Price: $1,599
Meyer Optik’s latest Kickstarter campaign brings back the “Wonder Bokeh” Primoplan 58 f1.9 Lens known for its ability to create different bokeh effects all with one lens. This lens gives photographers a tool which truly enables them to express themselves in different ways with this single lens.

Meyer-Optik Görlitz Trioplan 100mm f2.8 Lens for E-Mount | Price: $1,599
Meyer-Optik Görlitz has announced a modern remake of their cult classic Trioplan 100mm f2.8 known for its dream-like soap bubble ‘bokeh’ effect. The modern remake of the famous lens uses experience and modern technology to emulate this stunning effect more authentically than ever before.

Meyer-Optik Gorlitz Trioplan 100mm f/2.8 Titanium Lens | Price: $1,999
This Titanium version of Meyer-Optik Görlitz cult classic Trioplan 100mm f2.8 is known for its dream-like soap bubble ‘bokeh’ effect. The modern remake of the famous lens uses experience and modern technology to emulate this stunning effect more authentically than ever before.

FULLFRAME CINE E-MOUNT LENSES

Sony E-Mount AF Cine Lenses

Before jumping to manual focus cine lenses, it’s first worth taking a look at a pair of Sony E-mount AF lenses featuring Smooth Motion Optics (SMO) resulting in no axial shift and no focus shift while zooming along with minimal focus breathing:

Rokinon Xeen Cine E-Mount lenses

Rokinon Xeen Cine lenses are built specifically for use as a cinema lens for Sony E-mount. They feature an internal focus design so that the lens does not change size while focusing to minimize the appearance of breathing when changing focus. Each lens in the set is multi-coated for good contrast, glare prevention, and are color matched to a factory standard, allowing you to assemble a set over time with minimal color shift. They feature dual sided focus scales marked in feet, with dual sided iris scales. The 11-bladed iris provides a rounded aperture for a natural looking highlights and Bokeh. The lens is a manual focus and iris lens, and does not have auto focus or auto iris capability. It incorporates cinema-style focus and iris gears that share the same position across the lenses in the Xeen set. The common 114mm front diameter allows for quick lens changes when using a matte box and focus accessories. The focus ring rotates 200° from close focus to infinity; this gives you a high degree of precision when adjusting focus.
[Please Note: Manufacturer images show PL-mount instead of E-mount]

Rokinon Xeen 24mm T1.5 Lens | Price: $2495
Manual focus wide angle premium quality cine lens has an image circle that covers a full-frame sensor. When mounted on a camera with a full-frame sensor it provides you with a wide angle of view.

Rokinon Xeen 50mm T1.5 Lens | Price: $2495
Manual focus normal angle premium quality cine lens has an image circle that covers a full-frame sensor. When mounted on a camera with a full-frame sensor it provides what is considered a normal angle of view, being neither telephoto or wide-angle.

Rokinon Xeen 85mm T1.5 Lens| Price: $2495
Manual focus telephoto premium quality cine lens has an image circle that covers a full-frame sensor. When mounted on a camera with a full-frame sensor it provides a short telephoto angle of view.

Zeiss Compact Prime CP.2 15mm/T2.9 Lens for Sony E Mount | Price: $5700
Designed to shoot wide angles in tight spaces this rectilinear flat field lens offers extremely low distortion, minimizing it to almost non-existence and producing razor-sharpness to the very edges of a frame, even on full frame sensor cameras. The 15mm is a great tool for shooting architectural settings in confined spaces, as it accurately captures horizontal and vertical lines.

Zeiss Compact Cine Zoom Lenses

Zeiss 15-30mm CZ.2 Compact Zoom Lens for Sony E Mount | Price: $23,900
Yes, you read that correctly, TWENTY-FOUR-THOUSAND-DOLLARS! Optimized for digital cinematography, this lens supports 4K resolution and is color-matched to available Zeiss primes for seamless inter-cutting between zoom and primes. Internal mechanical adjustments built into a cine-style housing that minimize focus shift across the zoom range. Built-in lens gears on the zoom, focus and iris rings, allow use of follow focus and zoom motors (not included of course).

Zeiss 28-80mm T2.9 Compact Zoom CZ.2 Lens (E Mount) | Price: $19,900
This lens offers full-frame coverage and exhibits no focus shift over the zoom range. The cine-style housing features calibrated focus scales and industry standard gearing for focus, iris and zoom. At 7.72″ long and with a weight of 5.5 lb, the 28-80mm is relatively compact and lightweight, which makes it ideal for handheld and Steadicam applications. The lens features a built-in lens support post, with 3/8″ threading for use with available lens supports.

Zeiss 70-200mm T2.9 Compact Zoom CZ.2 Lens (E Mount) | Price: $19,900
This lens offers full-frame coverage and exhibits no focus shift over the zoom range. The cine-style housing features calibrated focus scales and industry standard gearing for focus, iris and zoom. At 9.84″ long and with a weight of 6.2 lb, the 70-200mm is relatively compact and lightweight, which makes it ideal for handheld and Steadicam applications.

Schneider Xenon FF Cine Prime Lenses

Schneider Xenon FF lenses are color matched to a standard at the factory, minimizing color shift when changing lenses. Every lens in the set covers a full frame image sensor without vignetting and is designed for 4K image capture. They feature a 14-blade iris, providing natural looking Bokeh, with circular out of focus highlights, 300° of lens barrel rotation, and share lens gear positions and size. All lenses share the same 100mm front barrel diameter.

Schneider Xenon FF 18mm T2.4 Lens with Sony E Mount | Price: $6300
This 18mm is the widest of the Xenon FF line of lenses. The lens features a barrel with a large circumference, providing wide spacing for focus marks. Opposing focus scales provide properly oriented focus marks on both sides, so an assistant can pull focus from either side of the lens. Lens gears for focus and iris allow you to use the lens with industry standard lens accessories.

Schneider Xenon FF 25mm T2.1 Lens with Sony E Mount | Price: $5750
This 25mm wide angle lens features a barrel with a large circumference, providing wide spacing for focus marks. Opposing focus scales provide properly oriented focus marks on both sides, so an assistant can pull focus from either side of the lens. Lens gears for focus and iris allow you to use the lens with industry standard lens accessories.

Schneider Xenon FF 35mm T2.1 Lens with Sony E Mount | Price: $3995
This 35mm wide angle lens features a barrel with a large circumference, providing wide spacing for focus marks. Opposing focus scales provide properly oriented focus marks on both sides, so an assistant can pull focus from either side of the lens. Lens gears for focus and iris allow you to use the lens with industry standard lens accessories.

Schneider Xenon FF 50mm T2.1 Lens with Sony E Mount | Price: $3995
This 50mm normal lens features a barrel with a large circumference, providing wide spacing for focus marks. Opposing focus scales provide properly oriented focus marks on both sides, so an assistant can pull focus from either side of the lens. Lens gears for focus and iris allow you to use the lens with industry standard lens accessories.

Schneider Xenon FF 75mm T2.1 Lens with Sony E Mount | Price: $3995
This 75mm tele lens features a barrel with a large circumference, providing wide spacing for focus marks. Opposing focus scales provide properly oriented focus marks on both sides, so an assistant can pull focus from either side of the lens. Lens gears for focus and iris allow you to use the lens with industry standard lens accessories.

Schneider Xenon FF 100mm T2.1 Lens with Sony E Mount | Price: $3995
This 100mm tele lens features a barrel with a large circumference, providing wide spacing for focus marks. Opposing focus scales provide properly oriented focus marks on both sides, so an assistant can pull focus from either side of the lens. Lens gears for focus and iris allow you to use the lens with industry standard lens accessories. This 100mm cine lens features a removable lens support bracket, so you can use an available lens support if you wish.

BUDGET FULLFRAME CINE E-MOUNT LENSES

Rokinon E-Mount Cine lenses

Not to be confused with their premium quality Xeen Primes listed below, Rokinon also offers a wide range of cine-style versions of their manual focus E-mount lenses adapted to include T-stops, clickless aperture and focus gearing.

Rokinon 100mm T3.1 Cine DS E-Mount Lens | Price: $599
This manual focus portrait-length lens provides life-size 1:1 magnification along with a minimum focusing distance of 1′. It incorporates one high refractive index element and one extra-low dispersion element into its design to reduce chromatic aberrations and distortions throughout the focusing range. An Ultra Multi-Coating has also been applied to minimize flare and ghosting for increase contrast and neutral color.

SLR Magic Cine E-Mount lenses

Don’t expect high-end features like no focus breathing or no axial shift from budget-priced lenses, but at least they have geared aperture and focus rings.

SLR Magic Cine 25mm f1.4 Lens for Sony E-Mount | Price: $399
This wide angle prime lens’s bright f/1.4 aperture is ideal for low-light cinematography that requires shallow depth-of-field. Its 13-blade iris maintains smooth background bokeh, even as the lens is stopped down. Other features found on this lens is a 52mm filter thread that won’t rotate with lens focusing, and 0.8 MOD standard gearing on the focus and iris rings for interfacing with follow focuses and lens control motors.

Check out our Guide to APS-C E-Mount Lenses

For more tips and tricks about getting the most out of your Sony a7 series camera, check out my new book ‘Sony a7-Series: From Snapshots to Great Shots’.
It’s your guide to all of the Sony a7-Series cameras including the new a7RII. While the camera manual explains what the camera can do, it doesn’t show how to use the camera to create great images! Starting with the Top Ten things users need to know about the cameras, author Brian Smith, a Pulitzer Prize-winning photographer and Sony Artisan of Imagery, carefully guides you through the operating features of Sony a7, a7R, a7S, a7II and a7RII and how to use them. Get practical advice from a pro on which settings to use when, great shooting tips, and assignments at end of chapter to practice what you’ve just learned.

First of all very nice post. Keep it up mate!
Same question, I got the A7s and looking into these lens (Samyang 50mm T1.5 Cine Lens for Sony E-Mount)
when you say E-Mount for Sony is that mean if we get these lens
there’s no need for a meta bones adapter? It will fit in the A7s without the need of the adapter? Just checking before I place my order.

Hello Brian
I want to buy a proper adapter, so my Sony A7s and Canon EF 70-200 f/4 L IS USM will work together. Can u give me some advice? Im also interested how does the adapter effect the sensor efficiency? If i shoot with an adapter, will i still be able to use the whole 35 mm sensor or it will only allow me to work with limited area.
And by the way thank u for all ur advice.

Brian is 100% correct about the Metabones Smart Adapter IV, but DO NOT buy if you intend on using AF. It can take anywhere from 1-4 seconds to confirm the foucs point, even when not changing the focal point, distance, or aperture. Also, the accuracy of the AF is severely limited by the adapter.

A word of warning about the Metabones Smart Adapter IV: although it does a great job generally with Canon EF lenses, be aware that its auto-focus performance is very slow. Metabones, themselves, acknowledge this in their own literature, quote: “Autofocus speed is very slow and inadequate for most moving subjects. The autofocus speed is unfit for professional use for sure, and it would disappoint most enthusiasts.”

I use one with an A7R for insect macro-photography, where manual focussing is preferred.

Yes I mentioned that in my Guide to Sony Lens Mount Adapters: “There are now several options that provide AF & AE with Canon EF and EF-S lenses. None are what I’d call “fast” AF so I wouldn’t suggest any of them to shoot sports – but they work fine for portraits and landscapes. They work in AF mode with all Canon SSM lenses made since 2006, but non-SSM lenses, like the original 85/1.2 and 50/1.0, operate with manual focus only.”

Hi! A small tip regarding the SONY E 10-18mm f/4 OSS. If you remove the black baffle part from the back of the lens, you notice that the lens will cover 13-18mm focal lengths while offering the FF-image circle. Normally the baffle will give severe vignetting at 16-18mm, but after the baffle is removed the 18mm will be actually the most vignette-free focal length.

There are only three screws lenses holding the baffle, so it’s very easy to remove and put back again.

I’m looking towards the new Sony FE PZ 28-135mm f/4 G OSS to use on an A7 ii. I am looking for the very best zoom in this approximate range for still photos. This lens seems intended for cine work, which I never ever do. Is there any reason it won’t be excellent for still work? Thanks!

Awesome and thorough article Brian! I just bought the A6000 and was wondering if you could recommend a lens for action shots? (Dog photography but shooting outdoors while they are in motion – not so much studio/stills.)

Do you find that the a6000 is a solid choice for action photography? I was originally going to go with the A7II but I went with the 6000 for the 11fps and the reviews that Jason Lanier and Gary Fong had given on its quality. Interested in your perspective on this.

I love the a7II for portraits, landscapes and many other uses – but I have to give the a6000 the nod in terms of action photography it has a more advanced predictive AF system. The a6000’s smaller APS sensor is also a bit more forgiving in terms of depth of field and the criop sensor essentially acts as a 1.5 teleconverter compared to a7 fullframe bodies. While I don’t like this for portraits – it’s a big plus for sports action.

Has anyone tried the Sony Vario-Tessar T* E 16-70mm f/4 with a A7ii (or other A7 model)? Although you give up full frame, it seems like it could be a good companion given the 24-105 effective range, image quality and size.

Brian, thanks for the quick reply. Why would the FE 10-18mm be deemed a decent match yet this lens is not recommended? Is there something unique to the design of the 10-18mm? I don’t mind losing the pixels going from full frame to APS as long as the image quality is excellent.

Yes, the Sony FE 16-35mm is a great lens which I’m considering purchasing. I have currently have the FE 35mm 2.8 Zeiss which I love and a Canon 50mm 1.4 rangefinder lens which takes great shots. I looking for a good intermediate zoom and thought the 24-105mm effective length would be a good option if the lens would perform well on the A7ii. As mentioned I don’t really have a need to blow up my shots to poster size so I don’t mind the APS crop. My other choices are the FE 24-70 Zeiss, which get’s only fair reviews or the new FE 24-240 which might be nice but it could be hard to make a 10x zoom really have great optics.

Hi Brian, thanks for this great guide. I’m buying the A7s for the main purpose of video recording due to it’s low light strength. I have not settled on the best lens to buy for filming yet. I will primarily records indoor in the evenings/ nitgts… Any recommendations are much appreciated:)

My A7II is en route from B&H and I have the 35/2.8 to go with it. Also will get the adapter to mount my 80mm/2.8 from my Hasselblad. What I’m seeking as well are older manual lenses from OM, Contax, etc. for adaptation. What are the best of the oldies to fit the A7II and what is the proper adapter? Many thanks.

Hello Brian, awesome guide! I am looking to buy the sony a7ii soon. I’ am going to use the camera to shoot architecture buildings, landscape, kite surf and snowboard photographs and videos. I would like to hear your opinion about the kit lens (FE 28-70mm f/3.5-5.6 OSS Lens) available with the sony a7ii. Also please suggest to me one (or two) lens that is more suitable for the photography/video I intend to use my camera. Thanks in advance.

The 28-70 kit lens is a good start – especially if you get it at the kit price. You can start with that and if you find yourself wanting something wider – add a FE 16-35mm f/4 ZA OSS or if you find yourself needing something longer – go for the FE 70-200mm F4 G OSS

I have your A7 book, which I like very much, and am glad to see there is an updated discussion of the latest lenses. I have the A7r and Sony FE 55/1.8 lens (which is amazing) but need a landscape lens to shoot gardens and architecture, with some night shooting. In general, I won’t be shooting really huge sweeping mountain scenes, but I need some flexibility. I thought I would get the Sony FE 16-35mm f/4 ZA OSS Lens next, but now I see the new wide angle lenses that are coming soon. Which would you recommend? Would anything be as awesome as my 55?

[…] inclined toward operating in a manual focus world then there is a much larger collection of lenses. Brian Smith does and excellent job of providing a complete collection of all the lenses built for these cameras […]

What about no FF lenses on the new A7rII? with a 1,5 factor still worth it? I mean, use a non FF lens on that camera, the result will be poor? like Zeiss Touit 12 mm f:/2,8 becomes a 18 mm or vario Tessar 16-70mm f:4 = 24-105mm

Brian, thanks for this great summary. I have shot during extensive traveling for my own enjoyment for many years, and with some great successes, but always with a smaller camera (Canon S-100 these days) on the theory that the camera that is with you takes better pictures than the one that isn’t. I’m finally taking the plunge to get a big boy camera and getting the A7rii to try to take my shooting to the next level. I am rationalizing getting this beast because I work in TV and may be able to use it for video as well, but that’s not the initial aim.

My question is: I own NO lenses so I’m starting from scratch. If I were to start with TWO lenses, what would be your suggestion. TRAVEL is a big use for what I’m getting, as is set photography, but part of the reason for getting this camera is to try to up my game so I’m considering a zoom and a prime.

I was thinking of starting with either the 24-240 or the 24-70 with either the 55mm prime or the 35mm prime. But I’m reticent to get that beast rather than the superior 70-200. I suppose I could get 24-70 & 70-200 to cover the range and no prime…I know there are tons of questions you could ask to give more refined advice, but that could take years and cost millions of lives, and I’m sure you have better things to do!

Sorry to be long-winded, just wanted to know if you had a starting suggestion based on what I’ve told you.

Thanks, Brian. Sound advice… and jibes with a friend who told me to start with the 24-70 and use if for a while to see what I need most to complement it, speed or range… even thought video is not my priority at the start. That lens IS lighter, which doesn’t hurt. Of course, there’s always the 16-35… go the other direction.

I’ve never used primes, but became enamored with that idea due to all the raves about the 55, but I suppose that can wait.

Hi, Love the information you provide! Im starting from scratch and looking to purchase the a7s. i have a budget of about 3500. My main purpose will be to shoot short music video promos and press kits (sometimes with interviews) commercially and also be able to get some stills of some of the clothes my wife makes for her website while I have it. What lens or lenses should I start off with to get up and running and be able to do what I need to do with competitive quality within budget? Obviously , the camera will eat most of it.

You should be able to just fit an a7S and FE 24-70mm in for around your budget, but you may eventually wish to push it a bit to include a fluid head video tripod and some better audio. This list should get you started: http://briansmith.com/sony-a7-a7r-accessories-guide/

[…] may be thinking that the E-Mount will severely limit you, but as Brian Smith pointed out in his ultimate guide to Sony E-Mount lenses — there’s no such […]

Jason Anderson

July 3, 2015

Greetings Brian,

Great article. I just purchased the A7II. I am military so looking for affordable options for lenses for my new camera. We are looking for something to complement the 24-70 that came with our camera. Thinking maybe 70-300 or so. We noticed you can find adapters to allow the use of Sigma and Tamron lenses made for Nikon.

First off, thank you for your service. While there are hints that an AF adapter “might” finally be in the works for Nikon lenses – there is nothing concrete and so it’s way to soon what lenses might work with one. So if AF is important, a much better choice is the Sony A-mount version of those lenses. The Sony LA-EA4 is the fastest AF adapter for a7II.

Great informative article about Sony a7r…I am a nikon d600 owner doing zoo photography..I am seriously considering converting to a sony a7r…I understand that my nikon lenses 24-70, 70- 200 & 70 300 will not be on auto focus and will have to buy new sony lenses……Any guidance you provide will be of some great assistance

Brian
I have a Sony A7Rll on order and have ordered the Sony 35MM 1.4. and will be ordering the Zeiss Batis 85MM. I am starting with these lenses. Most of my photography is portrait and landscape, and I want to do more street photography. What would your next lense suggestions be

Those lenses are a great combination. The Sony FE 35 F1.4 ZA is actually a great choice for street photography. It certainly depends in personal taste – but I find the 28-35mm range ideal for street photography.

Many thanks for all the excellent info and insight — it’s much appreciated. I think there may be some Lensbaby offerings (e.g. Velvet 56) and that you may wish to include in your list of fe of glass.

Also, I’m curious — how do you feel about the trade-off between quality and convenience in terms of the fe 35mm 1.4 and 2.8 lenses? Do you think a big lens has a significant negative impact on street, journalistic or portrait work? I love to work in low light and to play with shallow DOF. I might be willing to deal with the hassle of size/weight, but I’d hate to give up chances to shoot because potential subjects are “turned off” by my kit. I’m not necessarily concerned about “secretly” taking shots, but rather the risk of making people feel weird, thereby cutting off opportunities. I’d love to learn your perspective on this point.

Hi Brain, just bought the Sony A7 and with that the FE 16-35mm now looking a good lens with good Zoom. I been given some advise in getting the 24-240mm, what other full frame E mount lens would you suggest?

A more expensive option would be the Sony FE 70-200mm F4 G OSS which is a good choice if you’re looking for a tele-zoom that matches the optical quality of the 16-35, plus a Sony FE 55mm F1.8 ZA to fill the gap between 35 to 70mm.

brian,
good advice all and thanks! my wife and i just returned from spain/portugal shooting a rx100m3 and a A7ii with sony zeiss16-24 and 24-70, sometimes dueling on landscapes and in castles. wow. it was great. the dx100m2 held its own pretty much. so now looking at the batis 85, next on my list like you! lol!

but with such high resolution digital zoom is so awkward on the a7ii and so easy on the rx100m3! with the A7rii even more digital headroom, so what is the answer? sony could so easily put the A7rii sensor in a rx100m5 and boom no need for 200 – 300mm teles, at least for some of us! any thoughts?

Those two cameras are a great combination – but putting a fullframe sensor into an RX100 Cyber-shot would require a bigger body. While that’s not impossible, it might be more likely in the form of an RX1 update. You should have a look at RX10 Mark II since it sports the equivalent of a 24-200mm F2.8 lens.

brian, just ordered the Batis 85 and await bokah prime hapyness in big amounts!
lol! but would be glad to hear your thoughts on integrating digital zoom per the A7ii and as soon as it is off back order, the A7rii. digital zoom is available through menue picks and one time setting as you know now. and i fall in love with it every time it pops up in manual focus, same experience as those fold outs when i was 15! so shouldn’t it be on, say for instance … Sony’s firmware roadmap for demountable lens cameras with the best primes?? i’d pay for that app! red

Thank You for your answer! Glasses from Sony are ok, I have bought the 70-400 mm a-lense, but it is heavy and thick an “clumsy”. I wonder why it is impossible to produce new lenses like my 70-300mm Minolta Bearcam with updated fastware to sony a or sony e in 2015? Has Sony a good answer to that question?

Hello Brian!
first of all, thanks for all the information, very useful!

I’m Matias from Argentina, and I’m heading today to NY to buy a A7ii during this week (at B&H); so for me it’s a long trip and big investment, considering currencies.

I do mainly video (documentary, on the road, alone), and will definitely use Slog2 (I don’t like video image, but cinema texture); I know A7S is a better option because of its high ISO, but it’s out of my budget and I want to benefit from the 5-axis stab so I can use some very old M Leica lenses I have (Summilux 50mm 1.4, 35mm 4.0, 135mm 4.0); I really hope they work properly with the Metabone adaptor (but I’m considering the Voigtlander VM-E you mentioned on one of your articles).
I’ll use it for still photography as well, but it’s secondary.

Is it the video quality from A7S way much better (without considering the ISO advantage, just the video resolution, final image) than the A7ii?
If I’m not wrong there’s a moire issue on the last one as well.

Finally, about the lenses:
I can’t relay totally on those Leica lenses as a recent but professional filmmaker; so I’ll have a second (modern) lens’ combination. Unfortunately I’ll need to start with the kit lens 28-70mm (not fast) and go for the Sony FE 70-200mm f/4.0 G OSS Lens if it’s not to big/heavy (is there a big image difference between this two?), or sell the kit lens and go for the Sony FE 24-240mm f/3.5-6.3 OSS Lens (I’m afraid this all-in-one can be not good in most of the things it does), or finally just go for the Rokinon Cine T1.5 kit (24mm, 35mm, and 85mm Prime Lenses) but maybe they’re too big/heavy to travel with them.
Any advices?

Besides my Leica lenses, I’ve got the Canon EOS EF-S kit lens 18-200mm 3.5/5.6 but I guess it won’t work on a full frame camera.

Sorry about the long message, but I tried to be the most precise as possible so you don’t have to try to guess my situation!

The main restriction is my budget, but I’ll save some to get your book once I have the camera! no doubts. Thanks!

First off when are you traveling to New York? The first a7RII cameras arrive Aug 5th but it’s very likely that BH’s entire shipment will go to pre-orders. You could also check with Unique Photo in New Jersey, I’m doing a a7RII Launch Event for them 8/5 so they may still have cameras.

Both a7S and a7RII are deigned for excellent video quality. Sony a7S offers native 4K, a7RII offers down-sampled 4K from both the full width of the senor as well as Super35. To me I’d lean toward the later, but that’s just me…

Since you are an independent filmmaker, I’d think the 5-Axis image stabilization on a7RII would be a huge plus!

Either Metabones or Voigtlander VM-E Close Focus Adapters are excellent choices with Leica M lenses. The obvious difference is that the VME will allow added close focus capabilities which may come in handy with your Leica 50mm.

I went yesterday to BH store and saw that the A7Rii is coming out, unfortunately its out of my budget; so my doubt it’s between the A7ii and the A7S.

After some research at the store I probably will go for the A7ii, together with the Sony FE 24-240mm f/3.5-6.3 OSS Lens (for all situations, until I have the chance to invest on better lenses). The sensor stabilization lots very attracting for traveling documentation.
I hope this lens can make at least the job of my Canon 18-200mm 3.5/5.6 I used previously at my cropped 60D, and see if I still need a faster prime lens in case of bad performance on low light situations, something comparable to my previous Canon 50mm 1.8 (that is fine quality and cheaper than a Sony similar one). Do you think it’s a reasonable option?

My biggest issue actually is the moiré problems with the A7ii (and how this can be fixed with Slog2 and post-production), as well as the video quality between both cameras, when filming with XAVC S format at a good light situation. Is there a big gap between them?

Due to the size, weight and flexibility, I want to go mirrorless but the only issue is there is no FE mount telephoto lens other than 70-200. I love the range 150-500mm for wildlife and sports. I could use A mount lenses with adoptors but I will lose AF speed. So I am sticking with my Nikon gears until sony releases a good telephoto lens for FE mount. Rgds Bobby

Hi Brian. Thanks for all your reviews – very helpful! I come from a Pro Nikon background, now switching to the Sony A7 lineup. This week I rented the new Sony 90mm F2.8 G for the Sony A7ii to test out at a wedding. Getting it a few days early, gave me the opportunity to test out on the farm. I have to say – I’m finding the same hunt and peck as I did with the Nikkor 105 f2.8 VR Macro – is this just normal behaviour of a Macro lens? I was hoping for a little better performance from the Sony With that said – I found the hunt and peck frustrating so I switched to manual focusing with peaking and had much better experience but that got me thinking… Rokinon/Samyang has the “new” 100mm f2.8 for Sony E – if I’m manual focusing the Sony 90 – why not the Samyang? What is your experience and thoughts on the Samyang 100mm 2.8 Macro for Sony E? Honestly – its a Macro lens – so detail shots, still portraits, etc are my only purpose for this lens.

Macro lenses must rack approximately double the focus extension to achieve 1:1 vs the close focus distance of other lenses, so what you’re noticing is a bi-product of the focus mechanism having to travel much longer than on a non-macro lens. The FE 90 macro does have a very handy focus limiter that allows you to limit focus range either from infinity to 0.5 meters or from 0.5 to 0.28 meters.

A little background. When I first got my A7 ii I purchased the E-mount 30mm macro lens. I know this was not an FE lens so the camera automatically cropped it to remove any vignetting.

Getting such amazing pictures I thought the Sony 90mm FE macro would be just amazing. I am using manual focus on a tripod. I have switch between auto and aperture to get more depth of field. Here is where my problem is. Any time I touch the camera or tripod to adjust the focus or settings the image in the view finder or on the LCD shakes so much I can not truly adjust the focus.

Can you tell me if there is anything I can do about this and is it normal. It is truly affecting my ability to get great macro shots.

Hi! I recently purchased the a7rii and a Sony e mount 30mm F3.5 macro lense – which I tested out the combination in the store and loved. I swear I was told that I didn’t need a converter for e mount lenses, but maybe I misheard? I cannot get this lense to shoot in a non cropped way – am I missing a converter? Or a really obvious setting? New to Sony and am eager to start learning! Thanks in advance!

Do FE lenses perform as well as E mount lenses on the A6000 and why would you now buy E-mount with FE mounts now covering most options ? Probably also a good choice for those of us who may consider buying A7’s for their full frame in the future.I am looking at getting the Sony FE 24-240mm f/3.5-6.3 OSS as an allrounder travel lens for my Sony A6000. Changing primes on a recent trip to Europe proved cumbersome and time consuming especially on busy London streets during their (August) peak holiday season.

Great information, Brian! I just purchased the A7S because my focus is on video. I will primarily be recording informational videos, interviews/testimonials, and videos of me speaking. For my first lens I intend to buy the 55 f/1.8. If you had to choose just one, do you think this will suffice?

Also, is your book primarily on photographs, or does it include instruction on video as well?

With my A7s I will be recording informational videos, interviews/testimonials, and videos of me speaking. For a lens, I want something travel size, great bokeh; do you think the 55 f/1.8 is my best bet?

I am looking for the best E mount lenses for the Sony Alpha 7R II for reproduction of flat art in the studio: perfect geometry/lowest distortion, maximum sharpness and highest color accuracy are required.

Besides that I am looking for one or two good (zoom)lenses for light travel.

Wow, this is a super-useful blog posting, thank you so much. Can I ask for advice? I have a Sony Alpha a6000. Nice camera, but I’m finding it hard to get the lens I need. My wife has a style blog, and I want to take full-length pictures of her that show off the clothes well. Outside is no problem; a Sony 50mm prime lens gives me beautiful pictures with lovely bokeh. Indoors is much harder. I want to get full-body shots with nice bokeh of the wall behind her, but we live in a condo and have relatively little room to work with. I’ve been trying a Sony 35mm f/1.8 lens, but I haven’t been impressed with the picture quality. Compared to the 50mm prime, the pictures are rather flat and dull, with much less sense of depth or vividness. Someone suggested I try the 24mm Rokinon f/1.4, and I’ve ordered that as a rental to try it out. Do you have any other suggestions? Another idea is a 24-70 zoom lens, but the Zeiss 24-70 f/2.8 is crazy expensive — like $2,000 — and I’d also need a $300 adapter to fit it to my E-mount. Do you have any suggestions?

Hello Brian Sir! How are you doing? Sir, I have got a commercial wedding shoot ahead. Marriages in India are often at night. I have already decided to buy SONY’S 42 mp A7R II. I am really confused about the lenses I should own. . Please recommend 2-3 nice FE lenses appropriate for low light/portrait/wedding/candid/landscape photography.
Sir, some photographers are scaring me by saying that some of sony fe lenses(specially lenses I can afford) are not able to resolve detail for a7r ii sensor. Please throw some light over that and recommend lenses that can resolve detail for this higher resolution sensor.

Hello – Just bought the alpha 7 Rll and have the zeiss 35 and 55 but need some longer lens…also have the reduction for A mount….something 80- 150 would be nice…I am not a fan of zooms but maybe…? The zeiss 24-70? Thank you
David

Hey Brian, very helpful guide here! One question I had that I couldn’t find the answer to: Will A-Mount primes such as the 35mm or 50m f/1.8 DT SAM transfer meta and auto-focus with an A7II using LAEA3 adapter?

Thank you for a very informative post!
I have used the Nikon D300 with the Sigma 105macro for some years, but am now considering buying a Sony mirrorless. I mostly shoot flower macros and closeups. I want shallow dof and a good macro lens. If possible, I would stay with the APS-C sensor, but am open to full frame.
Which camera body and which lenses would you recommend?

Hello, I love your photography and lens overviews! I was just wondering as an owner of the Sony a6000 I have been thinking about what lenses are good for both FE and APS-C sized sensors. I have been considering the 55mm Zeiss for it’s great image quality. However, I have heard that it is a bit too specialized to be of any use outside of portraits and street photography which I don’t shoot often. Would it be any good for my a6000 at the moment and a full frame body in the future? (I plan to upgrade).

Also is the 90mm FE Macro any good on an APS-C camera (I know it’s not meant for APS-C but I would like to save as much money as possible when I upgrade.

Hi Brian, thank you for sharing your knowledge with the rest of us. I have just purchased A7S ii and now shopping for a lense. As A7S ii has sensor-based image stabilization, would lense based stabilization help? Is it even needed? Thank you again for a great informative site.

It’s not necessary, but if it’s a native E-mount lens, it doesn’t hurt as in-lens OSS is designed to work with 5-axis image stabilization. For third party lenses I recommend turning in-lens IS or VC off.

Hi Brian. I salute you for your work and expertise shared! I just bought an A7Rii and 55mmf1.8 after returning my 24-70f4 as I find f4 a bit tough with low light (not wanting to use flash). I do a little landscape and portraiture (weddings/birthdays) but not often in a situation to use much long lens for safari/zoo or sports (in the field). Choosing three lens, to invest over time, or at a push four: is this combo a bit overkill or redundant – Batis 25mm, Batis 85mm, Loxia 30? Am really impressed by Loxia 21mm and 50mm though. I can get some good discounts with ZEISS, hence not really disregarding Sony/ZEISS lens at all. Thank you

Hi Brian. I own an A7M2 with a 55 1.8 and the 28f2. I’d really like to get the 16-35 f4 for wider angles, but its not fast enough for my needs. What other lens would you suggest? Is 25f2 really a worthy upgrade to my 28 keeping in view the steep price differential? Other options to consider?

Hi Dear Brian,
Highly appreciate your efforts! Really great Knowledge!!
Could you kindly help me with your suggestion – which lens would you recommend For Sony A7Rii – Sony FE 28 F2.0 or Rokinon 24mm f/1.4 ED AS UMC E-Mount Lens?
I am a Nature / Wildlife photographer, although I Chair the board of an International Conglomerate (Based out of Bangalore, India)
Kristal Namboodiri

Thanks for all your useful advice. I currently am using Minolta AF lenses (20mm f/2.8, 24mm f/2.8) and take mostly landscapes, but also like general street and churches etc. I just acquired a Sony A7RII to replace my A7. Do you think I would gain much over the Minoltas if I bought a more expensive prime? The three I have been considering are 25mm Batis, 21mm Loxia f/2.8 or Voigtlander 21mm Ultron f/1.8. If you think there is much to be gained for the extra money, which would you recommend?

Thanks for your quick response. Have you used the Minolta lenses? Is the difference between them and the Zeiss worth the extra dollars? my Minoltas are quite good, but I have no means of comparing them to the newer lenses, as no-one tests these old lenses any more.

Dear Brian, Thank you very much for the clarity.
Request for few more seconds. With A7Rii, I am currently using Tamaron 24-70 (F2.8 – really heavy – any cost effective alternative / full frame?), Sony FE 4/70-200 G OSS, Sigma f4/150 -500. Since, I go for lot of Landscape, etc. which is the Full Frame Prime Lense you would suggest, Please.
Thankfully and Prayerfully,
Namboodiri

Hi Brian. You have a great website and the information you provide is really helpful. I need some advice about choosing some lenses and a new body. I own a Sony a6000 with a 50mm portrait lens and recently purchased a 24-70 Zeiss FE lens (i am planning to purchase full frame a7 body in the near future so i purchased this lens) I am now using it on my a6000 and its really good. I want to invest in a wide lens to use on my a6000 and the other full frame camera that i will but. So depending on your reviews the best choice is 10-18. Do you recommend other wide lenses that i use on both cameras? And one last question Which a7 would be the best upgrade from a6000? I want to keep using the a6000 so what i look for is the things that a6000 can not do. The newest a7rii’s seem to be a bit expensive than other a7’s do you think it would be better to buy the latest release?

Thanks for the quick answer Brian. What about the step up from the a6000? As i mentioned i want to use a6000 along with the new a7 i will purchase. So i am looking for the capabilities that a6000 can not do. That way i can use both of them in different situations.

First I hope you are having a great holiday season and all the best for you and family in 2016. I have the following question: I shoot a lot under low lights conditions (classical music concerts) I use primarily a Sony 70-200 2.8 A-Mount with LA-EA4 adapter, I have no complaint with this configuration except the Adapter make it heavy and bulky. My other three lenses are E-Mount I sold all my A-Mount equipment. Now the only thing that justify the adapter is my concert lens and looking to change it for the E-mount option but I am concerned of the 1 Stop less that I will have, well actually a little less because I understand I lost 1/3 of a stop with the adapter. Do you think the f4 emount will do a similar job? is there any comments with your experience? or should I wait for new new 2016 lineup? Thanks so much for your kindness and super Sony community support. Cheers and again Happy Holidays

It’s certainly possible that we’ll see faster FE zooms in 2016, but bear in mind the weight and bulk of a 70-200 2.8 is mostly from the lens – not the adapter. The FE 70-200 F4 only 1/2 stop slower than the 70-200 F2.8 + LA-EA4…

Hello Brian
I’m DoP looking the A7rii as a 2nd camera for a tv show I’m working on. I read that when shooting in the S-Log mode the minimum selectable/recommended ISO is 3200. Do you know if his is true? If so it would mean a whole load of ND when shooting outdoors. Bearing in mind I’m tied to 1/50th shutter.
(UK production)
Thanks
Sam

Hi, Brian. I am a new and proud owner of the Sony a7s. I’ve read through your posts on various lenses and adapters. I shoot mainly video but also have an interest in photography. Where is the best place to shop for an affordable lens? Are most of the lenses going to cost me $1,000 at least?
I have my sights set on the Sony FE 35mm or 50mm but they are pretty pricey. Do you recommend going the adapter route to get a cheaper, nice lens or just purchasing a lens that fits right onto the camera without a mount (though pricier)?
Looking forward to your response. Thanks!

So, are the Sony A7s and A7sII the only silent full frame cameras? I’m working on low budget films and shows using Canon’s system (6D body, several lenses), but I’m currently limited by shutter sound. I only take photos on rehearsal takes or between takes. This narrows photo opportunities significantly.

So, to the potential solutions: sound blimp that fits the 6D and other Canon full frames (if the blimp is truly silent) or switch to a system that is 100% quiet.

The Sony A7s and II seem to be the only full frame options at this time.

Brian, great information. Could you advise me as there are still lots of conflicting posts on the net – I am currently a Canon shooter, with an EF 100-400 Mk2, Ef 70-200 IS f4, EF85 1.2 Mk2. I mainly shoot stills, portraits, landscapes and some wildlife (which can move reasonably fast), but occasionally would like to be able to shoot 4K video. Which, if any, adapter will allow me to use the 100-400 reliably at all focal lengths, and will I be able to have continuous autofocus video on the lenses I’ve mentioned. Obviously if the autofocus is slow or erratic, maybe I should think again about getting a A7R2? My current Canon bodies which I would use for reference are EOS-6Ds.

I’m planning to get an a6300 in march. What do you recommend for a First lens, 2nd and 3rd?. Im going crazy after looking at this page, its awesome. Im a new guy doing mostly doing videography for weddings, corporate work, occasional photo shoots and I have a small family. Im on a budget so i only can buy 1 thing at a time. Thanks!!

Thanks a lot. Should i get the kit lens that comes with it or put $ towards a different lens? Im about to preorder =) I was thinking about sigma lenses? Do recommend 18mm-35mm on the a6300? for 50mm lenses. 50mm oss or the 55mm zeiss?

Hi Brian,
Great to see the post updated with the coming lenses.
Did you have the chance to compare the lenses around 85-90mm?
Which order would you choose?
I was probably going for the FE 90mm 2.8 G macro, until the 85mm 1.4 appeared. But for that price I could get the 90 and 55….
Regards,
Rafa

Hi Brian
Great article and very helpful.
I’m a recent Sony transfer from a Canon 5DM3 system. I’m very much loving the 55 1.8 lens on my A7RII body. Being a nature/landscape/astro/night photographer; what’s your take on an ultra-wide lens for night/astro shots? I was thinking of either the following complete setup:
1) Sony 16-35 f/4 + Sony 55 f/1.8 (and use the 16 f/4 range for astro?)
2) Sony 24-70 f/4 + Sony 55 f/1.8 + Rokinon 14 f/2.8 (and use the Rokinon for astro)

please help me Brian, i have a problem with the focus, the lenses 24-70 f4 or 16-35 f4 (in less times) I can not take good pictures 50% of the photos have front focus, change lens with the seller but the problem persists, I read the upgrade v3 .0 coming overcome this problem but it is not, you know something about this problem, thank you !!

Have you ever tested the Tamron 24-70 Vc lens using an adapter for this camera? I have the A7r and have the Sony 24-70 f4 and 70-200 f4 native lenses. I was just curious how well the Tamron would work on this camera, its one of my favorite in my Canon line up.

Hi Brian, thanks for all the work you’ve put into this post. I’d like your opinion on the best lens for the A7SII for equal parts of filming and photography. When it comes to photographs, generally something that can handle normal to close quarters distances with its subject.

After reading through everything, I’m still a little confused about what to look for in my situation. I have the Sony 70-200 f/4 G lens and am looking for a 2x teleconverter. Are there none that would fit that lens? The teleconverter you listed says it only works with the f/2.8 version of this lens… Thanks.

Thank you for this amazing resource, and I love your book. I am a recent convert from Canon. I have an A7 II, a6000, 24-70 f4, 70-200 f4, and 24-240. I also have a FotodioX adapter that I use with my Canon EF 50 f1.4 lens. I am now looking at WA options. The 16-35 is a little out of my price range. The Sony 10-18 and Canon 17-40 are similar in price on the used market. I don’t mind the slow or no AF on the Canon with my adapter since it would be for landscapes. Any thoughts on the IQ between these or other recommendations?

Wow, this is just amazing Brian. Thank you for putting ti together. Totally what I was looking for! I love landscape & architecture photography and ama newbie. Got an A7 camera. I have been eyeing the FE16-35 for the longest time for such purpose but would you recommend something else out of the ones mentioned above? I dont want the distorted fisheye view necessarily and want to keep full frame coverage and not comprimise the max settings of the lens. With my limited understanding, I dont see another option that can compete with FE 16-35 but what would you recommend if you dont mind sparing your expert opinion?

I do have the 28-70 and a few A mount lenses too. I also have the EA4 lens adapter even A mount full frame lenses are an option if you dont mind considering those as options. Some say the A mount version of 16-35 is also great as it offers F2.8 instead of F4 of the FE version. What do you think?

Hey Brian… Thanks for the recommendation on the 16-35 FE, I got one and used it for the first time taking some snaps on my last trip to SF, love the results. But now I am a little inriques with the release of the 10 mm Voigtlander lens. If you have to pick between that lens and Sony 16-35 FE, which one would you rather go for if you want to do both videos and still shots and your primary objective is the landscape photograhpy without comprimising quality of the image and not quite into post-editing them? What am I losing when I choose Voigtlander over Sony here, cant quite wrap my head around it. Thanks in advance.

Voigtlander’s 10mm is an awesome lens if you want really, really, really, really wide, but unless 16mm isn’t nearly wide enough, stick with what you got and consider the adding a 10mm somewhere down the road…

Bob

May 17, 2016

Thanks for all your work on this Brian. Regarding the new GM 24-70, you say “this flagship Sony lens is by far the best 24-70 on the market.” Do you mean for Sony e-mount, or do you really thing this is better lens than the Canon 24-70, f2.8?

Hi Brian, thank you for putting things together and it’s really useful. I got A7ii with 28-70 kit lens for leisure last year. Most of time just bring it travel with me for taking mixed pictures of landscape, street view, food. Sometimes shoot portraits and cats at home. Just for fun.

I am thinking to put investment on two or three better lenses, something like 35mm f1.4 or 35mm f2.8 (for the sake of light weight) plus a 55mm or 85mm portrait lens, then maybe a telephoto zoom later. what would be your recommendation?

The first thing I’d suggest is to pay close attention to what focal lengths you’re using with your 28-70 zoom. If you’re always shooting at 28mm and wish your lens went wider that will tell you to look for something wider than 28mm. If you’re always shooting at 70mm and wishing for a bit more reach – then it’s time to look for a longer lens. If you’re happy with the 28-70 focal range then you might want to consider a faster prime in that range.

The FE 55mm 1.8 ZA is a great lens for the money. Even though it doesn’t extent 28-70 focal range you currently have, its F1.8 aperture will allow you to shoot in lower light and with shallow depth of field.

I already got both FE70-200 F4, and Batis 85mm 1.8 lenses. Do you think it is worth the money to get the Sony FE90mm 2.8 just for the Macro shots? Of course it is always good to have an extra lens, but I also don’t want to overlap lenses. Just want to hear your thoughts.

Well, first off the FE 90 is sharper than either the Batis 85 or FE 70-200 F4…but I personally would base the decision on whether the Batis focuses as close as you want. If it dies, then stick with what you got. On the other hand, if you find yourself frequently wishing it focused closer, then a FE 90 Macro is just the ticket.

Thank you, I also got the FE35mm 1.4 which has a closer focusing distance, but it doesn’t do micro as good as the 90mm does as I see on Flickr.com. I am interested in some micro shots, so I might get the 90mm also.

Brian, I went to purchase the lens over the weekend, and found out this lens makes some buzzing noise. It is not crazily loud but it is definitely noticeable. I also tested it with video and the record got the buzzing sound at the background. Do you have the same issue on your copy?

I know this question is asked a lot!!! BUT… I would love to hear it directly from you.

I have the Sony A7SII camera. I’m lens hunting… Currently I have the GM 24-70 and the Ziess 55mm Prime. Very nice lenses. The 55 prime is extremely sharp and wide. I like that… I was thinking of getting 3 really sharp primes and maybe returning my GM 24-70 zoom? If I did what lenses would you recommend? I was thinking… somewhere between 18 – 28mm, 55mm, and the 85mm?

A. Would this be a wise decision?
B. If so what 3 primes would you recommend for this camera?
C. Would you just keep the GM zoom?

Hey brian,
so i was about to purchase the rokinon cine lenses for the fs7/5. My question to you is that for run and gun stuff would you prefer the new sony g lenses (advantage being the push auto focus and some other auto features) and are they comparable in terms of quality to the rokinon cine lenses. Which would you rate higher in terms of picture quality?

Any chance you are up to date on rumors? I would love to get something in the 24-120 mm range in one lens. Just wondering if you knew if Sony had any plans for that. It will help me decide what to spend money on now just to get by.

Here’s the deal on rumors. People who know can’t say and people who say don’t know…

I will say that lots of ex-Nikon shooters have requested a FE 24-120 F4 and lots of ex-Canon shooters have requested a FE 24-105 F4. Pretty sure Sony won’t make both and I have no idea where either falls on the priority list…

Very well put. I would love to have either a 24-105 or a 24-120. I tried the 24-240 and it is disappointing quality so far, as expected, just too much glass. I may have to purchase the 24-70 and live with the limited range but learn to love the quality… and maybe someday they will have something in the future…

Brian, thank you for an amazing guide. I have read through everything, and will get the book to start with my sony a7sII (which is on the way as we speak).

I’m a filmmaker, and I shoot documentaries about the people that live in the mountainous areas in Asia (nomads etc.). I am looking for a lens that would be the best option for video and I cannot decide what to go with in the range of around 1000$. I am considering two options.

1) The 24-240 as an all-in-one lens.
2) The 28-70 kit lens and a 28 mm f2 prime.

I know that 240 mm will add a lot more zoom, but I am not sure if I will really need it, maybe the 70 mm is enough? However I know that the 24-240 is a better lens than the 28-70, but for such a job that I am doing maybe it is better to have two lenses?

There are a couple ways to go so maybe it’s best if I give you the pluses and minuses rather than a hard and fast “buy this”

IF you know you need telephoto the all-in-one Sony FE 24-240 F3.5-6.3 OSS could certainly provide the one lens solution though at the expenses of lens speed which is really handy both for low light and shallow depth of field.

Sony FE 28-70mm F3.5-5.6 OSS is not a bad choice for video since it’s made for silent focusing which is a really good thing when recording audio – especially if you can get it at the kit price. While a7SII is not available as a kit, maybe you can find someone buying an a7II body and offer to pay the difference of the kit price.

Thank you for the detailed feedback! It cleared it out that for me the kit + 28 mm would be a better choice.

However, in the mean time, while I was waiting for your response, just an hour ago a family friend gave me the following 3 Nikkor lenses:
Nikkor 28mm f2.8 Ai-S
Nikkor 55mm f2.8 Ai-S (micro)
Nikkor 105 f2.5 Ai-S

What I’m thinking now is to get the Novoflex Nex/Nik adapter and the 28-70 kit lens from sony, to have an all-in-one AF lens.

Dear sir
I am an Iranian amateur photographer on the point of buying a SONY A7R II camera. I wish to know your professional opinion on the lenses to fit the bill. I am inclined to get 10-18 mm but not certain about 18-200 mm (sony EP Z 18-200mm F3.5 – 6.3 OSS) I would be grateful if u could advise me to make the right choice
Thanking you in advance
Sohrab Bonyanalamsbonyanalam@gmail.com
instagram sbonyanalam

Both of those are APS-C lenses and while the 10-18 comes close to covering fullframe from 13-16mm, neither lens is ideal for a7RII. I think you’d be happier with one of the fullframe lenses on this list.

Dear Sir
I am new on sony camara . I bought Sony Alpha a7R II body only.
I then bought through Amazon Sony 70-400mm f/4-5.6 G2 Telephoto Zoom Lens.
However to my night mare it doesnot fit. I am with my children in a disney cruise.
I would appreciate if any one know about an adaptor so I can
mount this lens to the camara.
The internet in the cruise is very slow. If also any one know a sony
store in Palarmo Italy. I realy think you do not want me to finish
the cruise without taking photo.

Hello Sir Brian, I would like to ask your help / advise what kind of Sony FE lens should I buy for my Sony a7II if I would like to photograph 1) Landscape 2) Portrait and 3) Wedding. Also, their alternative lens which is lesser amount 🙂 Thank you for your help.

It’s the perfect mid-range zoom that would quite honestly cover 90% of what I shoot. I love it for portraits because 24mm is perfect for wide-sweeping environmental portraits, 45-55mm is perfect for half-body portraits and 70mm is the perfect focal length for tight intimate portraits. That range nicely serves you for weddings and landscapes as well. The cheaper option is the Sony FE 24-70mm F4 ZA OSS – but in my opinion the G Master is worth saving up for.

BUT…if you want more than one…

The second lens I’d recommend would be a 70-200 is the perfect compliment to a 24-70. For landscapes you rarely need shallow depth of field, so I’d recommend the lighter and cheaper Sony FE 70-200mm F4 G OSS over the Sony FE 70-200mm f/2.8 GM OSS Lens unless you REALLY feel you need 2.8 for shallow DOF or shooting weddings in a coal mine.

I am looking to delve into the A7 series, is the A7rii’s 42M pixels needed over the A7II if I’m not printing? I have always thought the extra features on the 7rii more ‘future-proof’ (back-illuminated sensor, higher ISO, more resolution, Eye AF, 0.78x EVF…) but it’s twice the price…and I’m not sure when the A7III is coming after the Earthquake and there are almost no rumours for Photokina 2016 except the priced-out-of-reach A9 …

Anyhow, notwithstanding which body I will get, the lens matter more. I have the 24-70mm 2.8 GM on my wish list as it is really quite versatile, going from sort of wide angle landscape to medium portrait lengths and anything in between, but it is not to be my only lens as it is too heavy and bulky, I would like pick a sharp prime and am struggling between the famed 55mm 1.8 Sonnar ZA and the newer 50mm 1.4 Planar ZA.

The former is just so much more portable and light and usable, is half the price of the 50 1.4, but captures less light and 55mm is slightly more zoomed in than I’d like for a standard prime. The latter is built more robust, has the aperture ring, is long enough to be supported with my off hand to take more stable shots, has a wider aperture and the most ‘normal’ focal length for me, and seems not to suffer from vignetting / CA as much as the 55 1.8.

I do think getting both is really redundant and pricey, and normally I’d go for the better quality of the 50 1.4 but it’s twice as expensive and much more heavy and unwieldy, so I still can’t decide…

Given that the A7II is almost two years old and the A7rii is double the price do you think it’s a better option to just wait for the eventual A7III announcement or get a discounted A7II to shoot with now while patiently waiting for new bodies? (Hopefully A7III will have the trickle down tech from the flagships and more workable resolution around 25Megapixels plus a more entry level price)

What do you think of the choice of lenses below if I were to get three lenses to cover almost everything?

I have just finished reading your book A7 series, a must have for A7 cameras! I have one question, I am looking for inexpensive ($500 or less) teleohoto lens for A7S ii that will be used for zoom. Thank you

I wouldn’t recommend Mitakon if you want anything in the photo close to sharp. I have not yet tested Samyang AF 50mm 1.4 so it’s yet o be seen how sharp or if the AF is descent since AF is new to Samyang and Zeiss Touit lenses proved it sometimes takes a few tries to get that right, but Sony FE 50mm f/1.4 ZA Lens is available now and it’s aa spectacular lens.

Any tips on how to get the best out of the Sony 90mm macro as I hope to use it with my underwater rig and don’t have the option of manual focusing once it is inside the housing?. Auto focus in the 0.28-0.5m setting is a big tease. It hunts back and forward without locking onto the right focus even though you see it so ever so briefly and I can’t seem to see any response when I press the lock button under the G symbol.Have I got a dud?

The focus range limiter is quite useful as long as youare shooting within that focus range. I generally have the lens set to 0.5m-infinity for portraits unless I need to shoot tighter. The 0.28-0.5 setting works quite well withing the macro range. Any chance you’re selecting too small of a focus point? When shooting macro with shallow depth of field you might try Zone Focus area rather than Flexible Spot to see if that works better.

The Focus Hold button works just as the name implies. Once you’ve locked in focus, you can HOLD it down and recompose while maintaining that focus distance. I don’t have much use for that since AF-S works exactly that same way by simply holding a half-press of the shutter then recomposing.

Film photography has been a life long passion of mine and is what I spend most my time doing, but I’m looking to upgrade my Canon t6i and purchase an entry level full frame digital camera for travel. Due to the light weight and reasonable entry price, I’m looking at the Sony a7.

I’m looking to buy two lenses- one for portrait photography and one for landscape photography. Which two budget conscious lenses would you recommend?

I am indeed considering the move to fullframe (lenses first). And to that, I have another question.

I have the Sony 55-210 F4.5-6.3, want to upgrade, and looking at the following lenses. Which, if any, would you recommend? I shoot wildlife, scenery, and people at variable distances in nature and at events.

The FE 70-300 has the most reach of any current FE lenses. Roughly the same as 55-210 on APS-C. There’s lots of requests for something a bit longer in the near future, but nothing announced at this time.

Hi, great site with dispassionate objectivity, I love it and thanks.
I’m an older filmmaker and have recently moved from an a7R to an a6300. I love it. The smaller format and compact package is perfect, and the video is perfect, for me. I’m use a ‘general’ lens that is smallish for my photojournalist needs – the Sony 16-50 kit lens. I know it isn’t fantastic, but it is a workhorse. For video however, I’m looking for a general purpose lens that would suit the APS C format. I’m assuming the FF lenses would be a waste since I would be throwing away a ton of pixels. Any recommendation for a suitable short zoom for APSC for video work that you would use? Cost is a consideration.

Hi Brian, thanks for the great website! I am pretty new to photography and about to upgrade to a sony a7rii. i will primarily use the camera for landscape, architecture and time lapse photography. for time lapse i am looking for lenses with a manual aperture ring to avoid flicker. do the lenses listed as manual focus also mean manual aperture ring? would the samyang 14mm f2.8 ED AS IF UMC Lens be a good choice? (no lens adapter needed right?) for time lapse i am also looking for something like a 24 – 105mm. i also want this lens to operate with a manual aperture ring but i dont really see anything in the list that would work. do i need to buy an adapter and buy a third party lens like nikon? (my friend did that for his canon 5d iii so it was full manual). and lastly, the Sony FE 24-70mm F4 ZA OSS Lens wont require an adapter for the a7rii right? Thanks very much, Brian 🙂

i dont have enough experience to comment on flicker. from what i have read on the internet, flicker is caused by the changing of the light (sometimes unavoidable) and also the very slight inconsistencies that occur from the mechanical formations each time the camera takes a picture.

my friend, who has made good money from time lapse in the past, told me the automatic lenses will definitely cause flicker from his experience and the way to prevent the flicker caused by the mechanics is to use a manual lens. he uses a nikon lens plus some type of mount on his canon 5d iii.

what do you think?

i just figured, because i am new, i should try and get the equipment right the first time. i have a descent budget but no one likes to waste hard earned money.

[…] love the full frame sensor because the photographic lenses available are now native to its size. So with the Sony when you put on a 16mm wide angle you get an […]

Jun Galvez

November 28, 2016

Hi Brian!

I’ve been visiting your site to keep updated on my Sony a7rii gear. I just have a question.

I saw a lighting 101 video where someone demonstrates how he can see where the light from pocket strobes will fall on his subjects by pressing a button on camera. It gives a test flash that seems longer than usual, making it some sort of temporary modeling light before he fires the trigger.

I’m using an A7Rii and a Yongnuo 560 IV.
Would you know how this is done?

I think I read somewhere that this is done by pressing the depth of field button on Canon cameras while the Flash is on camera. I want to know how this is done on my A7rii.

Thank you Brian. How about Sigma 150-600mm f/5-6.3 DG OS HSM Contemporary Lens for Canon EF, for Nikon? This alright also?
Can you tell me what is lost wen you use these lenses, with recommended adapters, on Sony A7RII? For example, how is the autofocus?
Of the adapted options listed, are they really double the zoom compared to Sony 70-300?

I just check the Ronikon FE 50mm but the CA is quite prevalent. Considering my budget, I think I will sacrifice Auto Focus capability for better optical quality. Is there any good option with manual focus? Still under 500$ (adapter mount included). Thank you.

1. I want to buy a Sony A7SII because of the great low light performance. I am going to use it to shoot concerts in medium to big arenas. I will set up the camera at the mixing desk position in the middle of the room and zoom as close as I can on the performers, and follow the action on stage. I need a lens to do this without the shallow depth of field effect, because I want everything to be in the same focus. Do I need a special lens that I can zoom all the way without getting the shallow depth of field? Or can I just turn the aperture on max setting and achieve full focus on everything while zooming with any lens?

2. Someone told me that Im better off buying an APS c crop frame camera instead to avoid the shallow depth of field effect while zooming. Is this true?

3.If I set the A7sII to crop frame mode and use an APS c lens, will it behave exactly like If I had a APS c camera with an APS c lens?

The only way to avoid shallow depth of field is the shoot with a wide angle lens or stop the lens down, so this may not be entirely possible when zooming in to a low-light scene

If all other factors are equal, APS-C cameras have about 1-stop more depth of field than fullframe – however high ISO performance is at least 3 stops better on a7SII than any APS-C camera which more than negates that.

My best suggestion is to crank up the ISO and stop down and just realize that some noise in the footage is the trade-off for wanting more depth of field.

You had mentioned today that today’s Deal on Tamron 150-600mm F5-6.3- DI USD lens is very hard to beat. I am very interested in getting a telephoto lens for my Sony A7Sii camera. I really want to do more wildlife photography and also just have a lens to be able to reach my subjects in nature in general where it might be hard to get to places. That being said I’m not sure how long of a focal length I need. This Tamron 150-600 seems like an excellent option for an extremely long zoom. I had my eyes on the 70-200 f/2.8 GM OSS lens. I don’t mind paying the extra money for better quality and sharpness, but would this lens be worth it, over something like the Tamron? Also, with a teleconverter hooked to the 70-200, like the 1.4 or the 2.0 would that be a terrible option?

If I’m looking for the best option for Macro Photography to take pictures of the eyes of insects in incredible detail, what options do I have for that with the Sony A7Sii? Also, would a dedicated Macro Lens be able to get as close as something with a reversing ring?

I am not a pro, and will never do paid photography, but I like getting the best and avoid collecting many lenses and sell them, etc.

I am getting the sony A7Rii and already have these lens:

Canon 17-40mm L F/4 (I hope I can use it for landscape and wide needs)
Canon 100mm macro F/2.8 (will keep it for macro)
Canon 50mm F/1.8 (could keep it if you recommend it)
Canon 24-70mm F/2.8 (planning on returning it, it is new and can get 100% my money back)

My goal is to shoot: landscape, some family portrait, macro, and travelling (street, churches, special indoor places). I would like to be as light as I can when I travel if possible but without compromissing in IQ.

Was thinking on keeping my wide, 50mm, 100mm, return the 24-70mm and get the Sony 24-70mm and may be get a Sony 35mm?